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Multicellular organisms eliminate abnormal but viable cells based on their fitness status through cell competition to maintain tissue integrity. Coelho et al report that fitness-based neuronal selection occurs in the course of neurodegeneration. Death of unfit neurons is beneficial, protecting against disease progression by restoring motor and cognitive functions. Image credit: Coelho et al, doi: 10.1016/j.celrep.2018.11.098.

Neuronal Loss May Have Beneficial Effect in Alzheimer’s Disease

Dec 28, 2018 by News Staff

Neuronal loss in Alzheimer’s disease may be the result of a cell quality control mechanism trying to protect the brain from the accumulation of malfunctioning...

Bacteroides thetaiotaomicron. Image credit: Kathryn Cross & Nikki Horn, Institute of Food Research.

Study: Dietary Fructose and Glucose Target Good Gut Bacteria

Dec 21, 2018 by News Staff

Dietary fructose and glucose, which are prevalent in the Western diet, silence a key protein that is necessary for gut colonization, but not for utilization...

Operation principle of the vagus nerve stimulation (VNS) system schematically showing the pathway for biphasic electric signal generation and VNS. Image credit: Yao et al, doi: 10.1038/s41467-018-07764-z.

Implantable Vagus Nerve Stimulation Device Aids Weight Loss

Dec 19, 2018 by News Staff

An international team of researchers led by University of Wisconsin-Madison scientists has developed an easily implantable weight-loss device. In lab experiments,...

Scanning electron micrograph of HIV particles infecting a human T cell. Image credit: National Institutes of Health.

Experimental Vaccine Protects Rhesus Macaques from HIV-Like Infection

Dec 18, 2018 by News Staff

A study led by researchers from the Scripps Research Institute, the University of Pennsylvania and Harvard Medical School shows that rhesus macaques (Macaca...

Ebola virus (green) infects human cells much more easily when you remove a protein called RBBP6. Image credit: Northwestern University.

Newly-Identified Human Protein Inhibits Replication of Ebola Virus

Dec 17, 2018 by News Staff

A team of scientists led by researchers from the University of California, San Francisco, J. David Gladstone Institutes, Georgia State University and Northwestern...

Kong et al designed an ingestible sensor that can lodge in the stomach for a few weeks and communicate wirelessly with an external device. Image credit: Kong et al.

New Electronic Pill Can Communicate Wirelessly

Dec 14, 2018 by News Staff

A research team led by MIT scientists has developed an ingestible capsule that can be controlled using Bluetooth, a widely adopted wireless protocol. Manufactured...

Torres et al developed new antimicrobial peptides based on a naturally occurring peptide produced by the South American wasp Polybia paulista. Image credit: Charles J. Sharp / CC BY-SA 4.0.

Scientists Repurpose Wasp Venom Peptides to Fight Drug-Resistant Bacteria

Dec 13, 2018 by News Staff

After performing an analysis of the antimicrobial properties of a peptide found in the venom of Polybia paulista, a species of South American social wasp,...

Caffeine and eicosanoyl-5-hydroxytryptamide may protect against brain degeneration. Image credit: Anja Osenberg.

Two Compounds in Coffee May Combat Parkinson’s Disease and Lewy Body Dementia

Dec 12, 2018 by News Staff

Parkinson’s disease is a brain disorder that can lead to shaking, stiffness and difficulty with walking, balance and coordination. Dementia with Lewy...

An atomic force microscopy image showing the interaction behavior of genomic DNA with the gold surface. Image credit: Sina et al, doi: 10.1038/s41467-018-07214-w.

Using Gold Nanoparticles to Rapidly Detect Cancer DNA

Dec 11, 2018 by Sam Sander Effron

Using as little as 1 picogram of purified DNA sample (think 2.5 trillion times lighter than a penny), scientists at the University of Brisbane have developed...

Newborns with vitamin D deficiency have an increased risk of schizophrenia later in life. Image credit: Kai Kalhh.

Study: Newborns with Vitamin D Deficiency Have Higher Risk of Later Schizophrenia

Dec 11, 2018 by News Staff

A study published in the December 6, 2018 issue of the journal Scientific Reports found newborns with vitamin D deficiency had a 44% increased risk of...

Exercising on a regular basis over a lifetime may help keep the body decades younger. Image credit: Michael de Groot.

Lifelong Aerobic Exercise May Help Keep Body Young, Says New Study

Dec 10, 2018 by News Staff

In an analysis of septuagenarians who have been exercising for decades, researchers from Ball State University found that they have heart and lung capacities...

The structure of royalactin (left) and regina (right) proteins. Image credit: Wan et al, doi: 10.1038/s41467-018-06256-4.

Mammalian Analog of Honeybee Royal Jelly Protein Keeps Embryonic Stem Cells Youthful

Dec 6, 2018 by News Staff

A mammalian protein similar in structure to the active component of royal jelly — the queen-maker for the honeybee (Apis mellifera) — functions...

Part of the heart wall of the murine heart after myocardial infarction; visible are the scar tissue (red) and dead heart muscle cells (pale green). Image credit: Hubrecht Institute.

Study: Adult Hearts Do Not Contain Cardiac Stem Cells

Dec 6, 2018 by News Staff

Adult cardiac stem cells don’t exist, according to a new study in mice by researchers from the Hubrecht Institute, the Amsterdam University Medical Center,...

Essential oils from garlic and several other common herbs and medicinal plants show strong activity against Borrelia burgdorferi. Image credit: Liviu Nanu.

Essential Oils from Garlic, Other Herbs Show Strong Activity against Persister Lyme Disease Bacteria

Dec 5, 2018 by News Staff

Lyme disease, which is caused by Borrelia burgdorferi bacteria, is the most common vector borne-disease in the United States with about 300,000 cases a...

This is a digitally-colorized transmission electron microscopic (TEM) image of the West Nile virus. Image credit: Cynthia Goldsmith / P.E. Rollin / CDC.

Newly Discovered Human Monoclonal Antibody Protects Mice from West Nile Virus

Nov 29, 2018 by News Staff

A research team led by Vanderbilt University Medical Center scientists has isolated a human monoclonal antibody that can ‘neutralize’ the West Nile...

The study by Yuan et al supports a long-term beneficial role of vegetable, fruit, and orange juice consumption on cognitive function. Image credit: Silvia Rita.

Long-Term Consumption of Vegetables, Fruits and Orange Juice May Reduce Memory Loss in Men

Nov 28, 2018 by News Staff

Vegetable, fruit, and orange juice consumption may be associated with a lower risk of memory loss in men, according to a new study from the Harvard T.H....

The cellular compartment of the tumor microenvironment is made up of tumor cells, immune cells, and stromal cells. Image credit: National Cancer Institute.

Oncolytic Virus Developed that Targets Cancer Cells and Associated Stromal Cells

Nov 26, 2018 by Sam Sander Effron

Researchers from the University of Oxford and PsiOxus Therapeutics have successfully adapted an oncolytic adenovirus that specifically kills cancer cells,...

Toxic amyloid plaques (red) and tau tangles (brown) form on the brain of a mouse modeled to have Alzheimer’s disease. Image credit: University of Texas Southwestern.

New DNA Vaccine Reduces Aggregation and Accumulation of Two Alzheimer’s-Associated Proteins

Nov 26, 2018 by News Staff

Alzheimer’s disease is the most well-known and most common type of age-related dementia. Amyloid plaques and tau tangles are both pathological hallmarks...

Exposure to outdoor air pollution may be one of the pathways that contribute to the health inequities experienced by people with intellectual disabilities. Image credit: Ralf Vetterle.

Scientists Find Link between Air Pollution and Intellectual Disabilities in Children

Nov 23, 2018 by News Staff

Levels of exposure to outdoor air pollution among children with intellectual disabilities are significantly higher than those of children without intellectual...